July 18, 2012 
Speculation mounts that Peter Jackson wants to split the second Hobbit movie into two films, according to Slashfilm.
Although Variety reported prior to Comic Con that Warner Brothers had denied The Hobbit would become a trilogy, Jackson told HitFix, “We have certainly been talking to the studio about some of the material we can’t film, and we’ve been asking them so we can do a bit more filming next year. I don’t know what would come of that, whether it’d be extended editions or whatnot.”
Warner Brothers holds the power and the money to make the ultimate decision and for now they’re saying The Hobbit will only be two films. Many speculate how the source material can be stretched to three films, with Jackson explaining to Coming Soon, “we have an incredible source material with the appendices … we also have the rights to use this 125 pages of additional notes where Tolkien expanded the world of The Hobbit published at the end of Return of the King …”
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey hits Australian cinemas December 26, 2012. Part 2 – There and Back Again – debuts December 2013.
Discuss: What are your thoughts on turning The Hobbit into a trilogy?
Any excuse to see those tricksey hobbsitses is good. As long as it is beautifully lush like LOTR. I love that photo you’ve used above.